Model of the Royal Galley

Model Royal Galley; Josep Carreras; 1968-1971

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Num. inventory: 12353

Object name: model galley

Title: Royal Galley

Object date: 1968-1971

Author: José Carreras

Technique and material: wood, cloth, plant fibre, metal, paint. Model ship.

Model ships

Model made by Josep Carreras in the workshops of the Maritime Museum of Barcelona, to serve as a reference for the full-size reconstruction of the Royal Galley originally built at the Drassanes Reials in Barcelona in 1568. It was built as part of a great fleet that was to stand up to the Ottomans. On January 15^th, 1568, the viceroy of Catalonia received the order to “build this royal galley of the best wood to be found in those parts, as the pine of Catalonia is the best wood to be found in Asia, Africa and Europe.” The decoration, which includes the classical iconography so typical of the Renaissance, was made in Seville.

The Royal Galley, which would house John of Austria as supreme commander, served as the flagship of the Holy League that defeated the Ottomans at Lepanto, off the coast of Greece, on October 7^th, 1571. In 1971, in commemoration of the 400^th anniversary of the battle, the Maritime Museum of Barcelona organized an exhibit where the public was presented with a full-size reconstruction of the galley, the result of a project led by the Museum’s Director, Martínez-Hidalgo.